Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
Have you looked at Lynchburg, VA? I don't know if I would say that it is "in the moutains," but you are not more than 15 minutes from the mountains. Lynchburg has good shopping and a few decent hospitals, plus a very vibrant downtown with a great farmer's market and the James River. The city has developed walking/cycling trails along the James that stretch for miles.
If Lynchburg is too busy for you, then there are several communities just outside of Lynchburg - Gretna, Altavista, Bedford, Rustburg - are just a few.
Best of luck!
And I totally forgot about Charlottesville, VA. It's a college town, but very nice and fairly mountainous. Not like our area, west of Asheville (Haywood County), though. We have fabulous views and see mountains everywhere we go.
You are all so kind - greatly appreciated! Not a city girl. More suburban or (even better), slightly rural as long as a good hospital is within an hour's drive. LOVE to be able to drive among country roads in the Subaru with all the windows down
Pretty towns in VA along Rt. 81 in the Shenandoah Valley, picturesque and not overrun with traffic. Charlottesville is very expensive, very.
Most all of the towns along Rt. 81 are picture pretty and affordable. Lynchburg, Forest, Salem etc. A bit further north is Botetourt County, another pretty and affordable area.
You may want to post in the VA forum for some information on these areas. We bought here in the WNC area almost 15 years ago -- before this area was 'discovered' and the problems we see now were non-existent.
You may also want to consider TN, north of the NC border. Towns like Johnson City, Jonesborough, Abingdon, Greenville TN. Similar mountain atmospheres, lower cost of living. Very best wishes to you.
You are all so kind - greatly appreciated! Not a city girl. More suburban or (even better), slightly rural as long as a good hospital is within an hour's drive. LOVE to be able to drive among country roads in the Subaru with all the windows down
If you're literally willing to be an hour away from a town with a hospital, you can pretty much go anywhere in the mountains of NC and VA) and find a house for $200K or less.
"The mountains of Virginia" covers a really wide area in VA from the far SW almost all the way to DC.
If you like relative proximity to a major metro area like DC you might want to look at the mountains in northern VA. From Shenandoah National Park to DC is just 1.5 hours.
I don't think it's necessarily colder in the VA mountains than in the NC mountains because overall the NC mountains are at higher elevations than the VA mountains. Elevation can affect the temp as much or more than latitude in the mountains.
Quote:
Originally Posted by QuilterChick
You may also want to consider TN, north of the NC border. Towns like Johnson City, Jonesborough, Abingdon, Greenville TN. Similar mountain atmospheres, lower cost of living. Very best wishes to you.
Abingdon is in VA. You might be thinking of Bristol which straddles the TN/VA line. I don't think the medical care is good there, though, just my personal opinion. I have relatives who live in SW VA and they come to Duke for big procedures.
Charlottesville,VA is not very expensive overall. I just did a quick search and there we several homes under $200K. I am sure there are pockets of very expensive, just like there are pretty much everywhere (including Waynesville and Hendersonville).
Boone temps tend to run cooler in winter than our temps. It's north of here, but the elevation is lower than were we live (4400 feet). I am pretty sure the further north you go, the cooler the temps on average are, just like if you go south, the temps will get warmer on average.
We have friends in Lynchburg and it's a pretty town, too. It seemed pretty mountainous to me when we visited them.
Boone has the highest elevation in that list at 3333 ft. I'm sure a town in VA at 3333 ft might be colder, but most towns in VA aren't at elevations that are as high because the mountains are bigger in NC than they are in VA.
"The mountains of Virginia" covers a really wide area in VA from the far SW almost all the way to DC.
If you like relative proximity to a major metro area like DC you might want to look at the mountains in northern VA. From Shenandoah National Park to DC is just 1.5 hours.
I don't think it's necessarily colder in the VA mountains than in the NC mountains because overall the NC mountains are at higher elevations than the VA mountains. Elevation can affect the temp as much or more than latitude in the mountains.
Abingdon is in VA. You might be thinking of Bristol which straddles the TN/VA line. I don't think the medical care is good there, though, just my personal opinion. I have relatives who live in SW VA and they come to Duke for big procedures.
Yes, sorry ... Abingdon is a bit north of the NC line. Adorable town. Damascus VA is also very nice, rural etc. Husband and I looked at several towns along both sides of Rt. 81 in VA before deciding on Hendersonville, but that was 15 yrs. ago and he wanted a job even though retired. We went out with some Realtors in at least 4 of the areas; couldn't afford Charlottesville even then; and ended up paying just under $300K at the time for the Hendersonville property with more bang for the buck so to speak; Hendersonville had more to offer at the time. Lynchburg was the top contender, reasonable home prices with more land to park the RV at home. So many things to think about when relocating; I wouldn't want to have to repeat the process.
Pretty towns in VA along Rt. 81 in the Shenandoah Valley, picturesque and not overrun with traffic. Charlottesville is very expensive, very.
Most all of the towns along Rt. 81 are picture pretty and affordable. Lynchburg, Forest, Salem etc. A bit further north is Botetourt County, another pretty and affordable area.
You may want to post in the VA forum for some information on these areas. We bought here in the WNC area almost 15 years ago -- before this area was 'discovered' and the problems we see now were non-existent.
You may also want to consider TN, north of the NC border. Towns like Johnson City, Jonesborough, Abingdon, Greenville TN. Similar mountain atmospheres, lower cost of living. Very best wishes to you.
Quote:
Originally Posted by goldenlove
We have friends in Lynchburg and it's a pretty town, too. It seemed pretty mountainous to me when we visited them.
What about Roanoke? Is there a reason no one has mentioned that area as far as possibly nice places to live in/near the mountains (I guess more like hills) of VA?
I realize I can ask in the VA area forum, but it would be good to get perspectives from people that also know the WNC area so I know the context of the observations/opinions. Is anyone familiar enough with that area to share thoughts on it?
I've lived in Lynchburg, Va. for about 10 years back in 76-86. I loved it and there are plenty of mountainous areas around, including going into SW Va. The northern part of NC is also beautiful. I'll tell you the best drive I ever did with the windows down on a highway was from Asheville to Knoxville and around Cherokee.
You have all kinds of choices in these areas for affordability.
I need to get back to the mountains. I love the ozarks but I like the mountainous regions more.
Good luck with your search.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
